What should I be doing the summer after freshman year?

[Ramo35]

Hi everyone,

I am currently a freshman in undergrad and I am about to enter into my second semester. I was recently thinking about summer plans and was wondering what I should be doing during this time. I have a volunteer program set up at a nearby hospital for the next two semesters and I am also involved with this freshman research program. I looked into different research internships, but I have found that most of these programs look for sophomores or people with a substantial amount of research experience. I was thinking of maybe taking a few classes at my university while also researching in a lab. My other option is to go back home and volunteer in an area hospital, shadow, and maybe take a course at a nearby university. Are these the things that I should be doing? Or am I missing something? Thanks in advance!

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[ToastCrunch]

Researching for a summer at your university is always a good idea! Establish a relationship with your PI.
Shadowing and volunteering in a hospital certainly are good, but you don't need to devote a whole summer to it when you could be gaining valuable hours in the lab. It also gives you the chance to get that substantial research experience for applying to those programs later!

 

[Lardy Boy]

Start studying for CARS section of the mcat by reading daily.


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[purplefrog13]

Do something you will enjoy! Some research, shadowing, volunteering, etc wouldn't hurt, especially since longitudinal experiences look really good...but make sure to take some time to have fun.

This is what I did, on top of volunteering, shadowing, etc
1st summer- A&P, lifeguard, teach swim lessons, athletic training
2nd summer- travel- Australia, UK, France, Italy, athletic training
3rd summer- research, summer classes